Hindsight is 2020

-

Before I jump into the obligatory first of the year post, I want to say THANK YOU. 


I felt your thoughts and prayers over this past week. I feel so much better today, which is perfect timing because it’s a new year!


At the beginning of 2020, we were on fire, weren’t we? We just knew it was THE year. All our dreams would come true. We’d finally lose that weight, get that job, finish that project, find our person, be free of that person, travel everywhere... The world was our oyster! 


Well, it didn’t exactly go the way most of us had hoped, but I don’t want to look back and think about how horrible it was, because really, was it?


If I look back through each day of the year, the good far outweighed the bad. I bet you would find the same.


Have you seen that match.com commercial where Satan and 2020 hook up and become the perfect match? It’s humorous. My first thought was, “Oh yeah that’s a match made in... Well, not Heaven. We can all agree, some really difficult things happened over the past year, but are we really going to credit Satan with all of it? He doesn't deserve that much attention. Difficulties happen. Remember the scripture “Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.” ‭‭James‬ ‭1:2‬ NLT


We’ve heard it a million times, but have we really taken time to consider all that means?


I don’t believe God creates chaos, struggle, or tragedy. However, I do believe he allows them. It is our choice as to whether we wallow in self-pity or consider it an opportunity to learn and grow.


As we move forward in a new year, I choose to revere 2020 with gratitude. Instead of longing for things to be different, let’s choose to work with what we’ve got. With the help of God, we can re-purpose what 2020 handed us.


Honor who or what has been lost by finding and living your best life. Your best life isn’t what Oprah says it is. It’s what your Creator says it is. “You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭16:11‬ ‭


HE will show us.


Last year I heard author and speaker Jo Saxton ask, “What gifts have you left unwrapped? What inheritance have you left unclaimed? Where is God inviting you to rise into your purpose?”


Hindsight is literally 2020 this year. What have you learned? What will you do with your new vision? This year, may we live on purpose, in the joy of God’s presence each and every day.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Should Someone Call an Exorcist?

-
Image
Last Friday I went bowling with some of my family. I am aware of my low skill level, so I remained humble throughout the first game, and surprisingly finished in 1st place!  The second game began and I just knew I would dominate even more. I may not have been quite as humble. I was last on the list to go. I stood up and approached my ball with confidence. I picked it up, set my eye on the center arrow painted on the lane, then took a few quick steps forward just as I had before.  As I took my last step, I swung my arm backward, then forward, and fell flat on my face. Actually, flat is not entirely accurate. I’m pretty sure every one of my limbs flew in a different direction, and the position of my head may have had folks wondering if they should call an exorcist. I also seemed to be temporarily blinded from the fall but could hear my ball bouncing its way down the lane. Let’s pause for a moment of prayer. The problem was that I had stepped over the foul line into the lane— 1. Not reali
Read more

The Complexity of Prayer

-
Image
Have you ever considered the complexity of prayer? Have you ever had something you needed to pray about, but you just couldn’t bring yourself to talk to God about whatever the issue was? I have experienced that many times. I will call it “Prayer paralysis.” Prayer paralysis happens when you are afraid of any answer God might give you. If He says no, then you might feel bad, or sad, or even angry. If He says yes, then your fear factor increases because you just don’t think you can handle what a “Yes” entails (which essentially means that you don’t trust Him). So instead of revealing your lack of trust (Like seriously, you don’t think He knows? ), you just don’t pray. It’s kind of like when you were a little kid, and you would sit still and close your eyes, thinking that it would make you invisible. God already knows our fears of failure, self-pride, and even our trust issues, so we might as well just go ahead and lay it all at His feet. There’s another kind of prayer paralysis that I ha
Read more

Go Deeper

-
Image
  Anyone struggling with anxiety? I have struggled with it quite a bit. Then, I realize that forgetting to bring all of my anxiety-inducing problems to God, is a big part of the problem. Yesterday I talked about living in endurance mode. Part of that is taking all of the difficult things, and trying to wait them out.  If I really think about it, I may have subconsciously believed that struggling is just part of the journey and that I need to suck it up, because Jesus went through way more than I ever will.    But, “ Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” (Matt. 11:28)  He never intended for us to hold onto them. Sometimes we don’t bother saying anything to God because, well, He knows what’s happening. He can change it if He wants to. So we sit paralyzed—enduring! Is that familiar to anyone? Though He could whisk our struggles away at any time, part of the journey, part of our relationship with the Creator is rooted in commu
Read more